Black, White, and Grey
by Arford
Summary: Summary on the inside. My first HnG fic, though I've read the series dozens of times. Warnings are in the AN as well. Read at your leisure.


First published: July 21, 2014

Warnings: May or may not be edited, slow updates, poor diction, hints of romance (shounenai or straight; both apply)

Rating: K+ or T

Disclaimer: I do not own anything in regards to Hikaru no Go, except for my works of fiction. Hopefully they pay proper homage.

Summary: This is AU, in which Hikaru has met Sai, but has never surfaced... until now. Sai's disappearance has pushed him to become a true player - not the best, not the worst. Just the one who will achieve God's Hand.

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_Pachi__.__  
_

The thunderous thud of the last attack was overwhelming; entirely so. It blew away the bystanders and left several stunned in awe at its wake. Not everyone recognized it for what it was. Of course, that didn't mean that each and every one of them didn't get that spectacular tingle crawl through their skin and bones. Whatever this person did, it shook them. Even those who were nowhere nearly as keen in the art of war could see that something beyond normality had occurred.

To the very few whose eyes, hearts, and minds transcended the bar, each of their acute senses had sharpened further. Audible gasps were heard throughout the hall as people stood, transfixed by the battle they were blessed to observe. Ragged breaths were taken among the even fewer who saw the truth in this competitor's sleights. Whoever this person was, man, woman, child, adolescent, adult, sane, insane, criminal, law-abider; it mattered not what labels were thrown - this person was most definitely the closest to attaining _it_.

As much as the people were stunned, they were frustrated, if not already vexed more than silenced. Why? Why this person, they thought. But each of them knew in their heart of hearts just why. After seeing so many battles between this supposed "amateur" and countless challengers, it was clear to each and every one of them. This person's hands were calloused and dipped in blood, showing the person's ever-tightening grip on an already unrelenting blade.

It didn't matter that this person never showed his face - that did not affect combat skills at all. It didn't matter that this person took on opponents of all strengths - he never pitied the weak nor did he flatter the strong. It didn't matter that this person had never lost a fight - each skirmish only revealed more genuine emotion towards combat, as though the person was endlessly searching. Every viewer knew that this mystery was but the real deal; whoever it was, the person clearly lived and breathed Go, and they admired that - envied it, even.

But to them, they all feared and sought what it seemed that he had almost found.

Kami no itte.

Currently, one Touya Kouyo was ahead of all other observers in realizing that the perfect hand had been played; after all, he had been the target which this strike was meant to cut down. He gripped his right arm tightly as his face paled. His whole body began to shake, quivering with fear and joy in a montage of internal chaos. Even then, his mind forced itself to search the depths of this borderless land, pushing itself and not backing down. His eyes scoured each country, each batch of fresh ground he hoped to seize.

Yet… his vision faded as he closed his eyes. He had searched and searched. But it was not there. The path to victory was not at his feet. His mind raced as it calculated the worth of all his taxes, and in the end, his profit fell short. Barely so, but still apparent.

As he took a moment to recompose himself, Touya-Meijin smiled a wistful, wry smile. This… this truly was the greatest opponent he could ask for. He longed to meet his opponent, face-to-face instead of staring at a screen on a box, which displayed only an alias.

It was after another minute or so that he regathered his wits and acknowledged his own inferiority.

And so ended a great war, one between two of Japan's greatest generals in the modern age. But little did the population of tacticians know, there was one who stood above them all. However, it wasn't the ghost of a king who reigned supreme in the just-past conflict of intense proportions.

No, they would never have guessed that one set of eyes watching the game had found what no other could grasp. One set of eyes had seen something a dark and twisted path, covered in thorns and bristles all around - the path not taken. The path that deterred all from walking its lonely lane.

A small, hidden path at the very edge of the mountainside. A road in which light was lit at the end of its gloomy entourage. The way to victory in this battle.

This one pair of eyes gleamed with joy as he recounted what had happened. Slowly, the second unknown opened his mouth, and the directions to the weary, winding road had been conveyed; and it was from that moment on that the world of Go had changed - even though no one but one fading ghost had recognized the symptoms of this massive new wave.

Fujiwara no Sai had found his divine path; but more importantly, he had donated his life's blood and soul to his current pupil's hands - to his student's own Go. 'sai' had been created for the sake of achieving God's hand… but here it was, stolen so suddenly from the very person who desired it more than any other.

And it was at that point that one young boy realized his world would never be the same as he decided to take a step towards the light himself.


End file.
